Corrections Department Proposes Housing Solution

Laramie, WY – The Wyoming Department of Corrections is seeking proposals from contractors to build 50 housing units it can lease to employees in Rawlins. Director Bob Lampert has called the need for housing immediate. And he says the plan will help close the staffing gap the prison has experienced for years. Corrections officials have said up to one-third of the security positions in Rawlins are vacant. But Lampert says the corrections industry is struggling to staff prisons nationwide, and Wyoming is better off than other states. He says the Rawlins prison is one of the safest of its kind in the nation.Lampert says a housing crunch has kept recruits away, and he says the plan is important because he doesn't think the demand for housing near Rawlins will slow anytime soon.